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Lookup NU author(s): Dr Fiona Cuskin, Dr Elisabeth Lowe, Dr Max Temple, Dr Alan Cartmell, Dr Artur Rogowski, Dr Rui Chen, Emeritus Professor Harry Gilbert
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC 4.0).
Yeasts, which have been a component of the human diet for at least 7,000 years, possess an elaborate cell wall alpha-mannan. The influence of yeast mannan on the ecology of the human microbiota is unknown. Here we show that yeast alpha-mannan is a viable food source for the Gram-negative bacterium Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron, a dominant member of the microbiota. Detailed biochemical analysis and targeted gene disruption studies support a model whereby limited cleavage of alpha-mannan on the surface generates large oligosaccharides that are subsequently depolymerized to mannose by the action of periplasmic enzymes. Co-culturing studies showed that metabolism of yeast mannan by B. thetaiotaomicron presents a 'selfish' model for the catabolism of this difficult to breakdown polysaccharide. Genomic comparison with B. thetaiotaomicron in conjunction with cell culture studies show that a cohort of highly successful members of the microbiota has evolved to consume sterically-restricted yeast glycans, an adaptation that may reflect the incorporation of eukaryotic microorganisms into the human diet.
Author(s): Cuskin F, Lowe EC, Temple MJ, Zhu YP, Cameron EA, Pudlo NA, Porter NT, Urs K, Thompson AJ, Cartmell A, Rogowski A, Hamilton BS, Chen R, Tolbert TJ, Piens K, Bracke D, Vervecken W, Hakki Z, Speciale G, Munoz-Munoz JL, Day A, Pena MJ, McLean R, Suits MD, Boraston AB, Atherly T, Ziemer CJ, Williams SJ, Davies GJ, Abbott DW, Martens EC, Gilbert HJ
Publication type: Article
Publication status: Published
Journal: Nature
Year: 2015
Volume: 517
Issue: 7533
Pages: 165-169
Print publication date: 08/01/2015
Online publication date: 07/01/2015
Acceptance date: 22/10/2014
Date deposited: 12/07/2016
ISSN (print): 0028-0836
ISSN (electronic): 1476-4687
Publisher: Nature Publishing Group
URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nature13995
DOI: 10.1038/nature13995
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